Cobourg Police warn of elderly bank scam

Photo by Cecilia Nasmith, Northumberland 89.7 FM

Cobourg Police are warning of sophisticated phone scam involving the elderly.

An 82-year-old man was contacted earlier this week, as he had received an unsolicited phone call from an individual claiming to be from the bank.

The caller advised that a large payment had been made from his account and that he confirmed the transaction.

Denying the transaction, the victim was transferred to a second scammer, who claimed to be the Crown Attorney.

fake identification number was provided and the caller used other tactics, which appeared legitimate.

The victim was instructed to go to the bank, while staying on the phone and withdraw all the funds from his account to turn over as part of a fraud investigation.

A bank teller intervened and stopped the transaction.

Despite this, the fraudsters made two more attempts to scam the person, again claiming to represent the Crown Attorney.

Cobourg Police warn that no government agency will ask for money over the phone and for people to exercise caution with potential scams.